


A light in the dark

by White_Wolf_With_Blue_Eyes



Category: Life Is Strange (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Animals, Bullying, Excessive use of 'Thank you', F/F, Feels, Fluff, Happy, Happy Ending, I'm a romantic without cause, Life Partners, Light Angst, Love, Many other tags to avoid spoilers, Not Beta Read, One Shot, Romance, Romantic Soulmates, Sad and Happy, Soulmates, Spirit Animals (more or less), Spirits, Supernatural Elements, There's no way to tag this without making spoilers, but mostly happy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-13
Updated: 2018-05-13
Packaged: 2019-05-06 03:12:37
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 14,880
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14632890
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/White_Wolf_With_Blue_Eyes/pseuds/White_Wolf_With_Blue_Eyes
Summary: Chloe Price was always a happy girl even without having friends, she always liked spending more time alone than with company. She played alone, she did homework alone, she even had fun alone.Although all that would be a lie, because there was someone who always accompanied her, but that person was not human.At least not completely.





	A light in the dark

**Author's Note:**

> This is just an idea that suddenly came to my head, and I calculated that it would not reach 10,000 words, but ended up being this monstrosity of almost 15,000 words. Shit.
> 
> Oh, and there's also a lot of symbolism involved in this fic.
> 
> Too much.
> 
> But before going directly to the writing, let me give a couple of notices.
> 
> First of all, I had to write this One-shot in short periods of time over several days, plus it was my number one priority to publish this writing before updating my other stories. Add to that the fact that I have to translate what I write from my native language (Spanish) into English and I also have to check the possible grammatical and spelling errors that may exist; that's why the delay in publishing this.
> 
> Second, I've been planning a new story for Life is Strange. That means that now I have two more stories that I want to publish apart from 'Howling at the moon' and 'Love me as I am', but they require more time to polish them before publishing them. So it's likely that updates will get a little slow because of that, but I'll try to update whenever possible. 
> 
> I must also say that chapter 3 of 'Love me as I am' will come before chapter 12 of 'Howling at the moon'.
> 
> With all that said, enjoy the writing.

"In a flock of white doves, a black raven adds more beauty even than the candor of a swan."  
- Giovanni Boccaccio

* * *

Chloe Price, at 6 years old, was an extroverted and animated girl. When she was in school, she could usually be found playing in the small playground, alone, enjoying the games for children like swings or the slide. Chloe never really cared about making friends with anyone, she could have fun on her own and that was enough for her.

Of course, the other children in her class did not overlook the fact that Chloe practically did not talk to anyone but she still looked happy. Some children tried to approach her with good intentions; they tried to integrate her into their group, but Chloe always kindly refused. Others, however, mocked her; nicknames like 'Friendless' or 'Lonely' were aimed at Chloe, but again it was something that she did not care about.

Ignorance is happiness.

Maybe that was Chloe's secret, ignorance, or maybe she really did not pay attention or did not realize what others were saying about her.

But things were getting worse and worse as Chloe grew.

Children who teased her and bothered her sometimes went too far. Things like pushing her into the puddle of mud that had formed somewhere on the playground because of the rain or things like monopolizing all the games and not letting Chloe get on one of them. The teasing of those kids even continued in the middle of classes, and those who did not make fun did nothing.

Ignorance, in those moments, was not happiness for Chloe Price.

That innocent children ignored what others did to Chloe saddened the blonde girl to the point where at a certain moment, when she was 8 years old, she had hidden herself in one of the stalls in the bathroom to quietly cry there.

The teachers did not do much to help, either, because every time Chloe went to them for help, the adults only told her that they were pure games of children, that she did not take it seriously. But when those 'games' hurt you physically and mentally they are not just 'games', but something else, but apparently the teachers did not see that.

Again, ignorance was not happiness for Chloe Price.

The ignorance of the teachers towards the things that the other children did to Chloe angered her to the point of not wanting to listen to their elders, except their parents, William and Joyce.

Chloe could at least trust her parents, as well as love them.

She even considered them as her only friends, and that was enough for her.

She never told her parents about the things that other children at school did to her.

She never thought it was important to have a friend.

But at some point at her 9 years old, when no one else supported her or comforted her when things went badly for her, Chloe finally found the friendship of a friend.

But she never imagined the kind of friend she would have.

At one point, when she was gently rocking on one of the swings in the school playground, a trio of children approached her; two boys and one girl. They were not the main abusers, but even so they had earned Chloe's disdain. Their small mocking smiles were enough warning for Chloe to let her know that they were not plotting anything good.

"Hey, Friendless, we want to use the swings" said one of the boys. "Move on."

Chloe, however, squeezed her hands tightly on the chains that held the swing. If they wanted to get her out of there, they would have to do it by force.

"You did not hear it? Get out of there" The girl replied.

"Yes, we want to use the swings" added the other boy.

Chloe did not flinch. Swings were her favorite game around the playground, so if someone wanted to get her out of there, it would take a Herculean effort to do it.

"Come on, guys" sighed the girl. "Get her out of there."

Then the two boys began to approach Chloe, but when they were only a step away from her, a tall and hoarse 'rrok-rrok' rang out in the distance, drawing the attention of the children and, suddenly, a raven flew towards the boys who were approaching Chloe and began to peck them and trying to scratch them with its claws.

The boys retreated a little, but the raven did not stop attacking them and squawking until they finally ran away from the place, scared by the animal. Chloe was stupefied, not knowing how to react to what she had just seen. A raven had just saved her from those children? It is not something that anyone would believe.

After things calmed down, the raven landed just a few steps away from Chloe and turned towards her. The raven squeaked softly, and Chloe could not do anything but thank.

"Thanks..." She said uncertainly.

The crow extended its wings a little and made a kind of bow, as if it were saying 'You're welcome' (that's what Chloe thought), and then the animal flew away. The blonde followed the raven and saw the animal perch on the branch of a tree, apparently observing Chloe, as if watching her. Strangely, Chloe did not feel strange when she thought about being observed by that animal, but she felt security for the first time since the children started to bother her. Then she smiled at the raven, who squeaked softly back, and left the swing to go to the classroom.

From that day, when a child tried to disturb her while she was away from school, the raven scared them away from Chloe.

Teasing and harassment did not follow after a while.

* * *

At 10 years old, Chloe Price could say she was happy. She did not have any friends at school, but since the teasing stopped she felt fine. That raven always defended her, and she did not know how to thank the animal, until one day, while on the school playground, Chloe saw the raven perched on a branch of a tree. Chloe's mother, Joyce, had left a chocolate bar as a snack for the school, but Chloe decided to use it for another purpose.

Chloe went to the tree where the raven was and pulled out the chocolate bar. She grabbed a piece of chocolate and threw it near the tree. The raven had observed that action of Chloe, then the animal decided to get off the branch of the tree and landed near the piece of chocolate. The raven seemed to examine the chocolate before taking it with its beak and eating it, squawking at Chloe as a sign of thanks, making the blonde smile.

"Do you want more?" Chloe asked in a friendly tone.

The raven watched her and, in Chloe's words, the animal seemed to nod. Then the girl grabbed another piece of chocolate, bent down and held the piece of chocolate with her hand to the raven. The animal came confidently to Chloe's hand and took the piece of chocolate gently, swallowing it almost immediately. The blonde giggled, amused by the raven's behavior.

The animal then looked up and looked Chloe in the eyes, squawking softly. Chloe could not help but smile, and then she gave the rest of the chocolate to the raven, who gladly ate it. When the animal finished eating, it moved a little closer to the blonde, and she could not avoid bringing her index and middle fingers from her left hand to the raven in an attempt to caress it. To the blonde's surprise, the raven let Chloe stroke her head and neck. In fact, it even seemed that the animal leaned on the touch of the girl, as if the raven was actually enjoying the caresses.

When Chloe stopped caressing the raven, the animal looked at her and nodded, and apparently the raven was grateful for the food and the caresses. Then the raven took a few steps back before extending its wings and rising into the air, flying towards one of the trees that surrounded the playground. Chloe followed the raven with her eyes, watching it perch on the branch of a tree and look for something inside a hollow in the trunk of the tree. The raven had stuck its head in the hole for a good thirty seconds before taking it out of there. Chloe noticed that the animal had something in its beak, but she could not identify what it was. The raven then flew from that branch to land near Chloe and bring its beak to it. It was then that the blonde could see well what it was that the animal offered her.

The raven had in its beak a black ebony ring with an aquamarine imbedded in it. The interior of the ring was apparently made of gold, making it more striking.

Chloe was surprised. Was that animal giving her that ring? She could not believe it.

"Is it... for me?" She asked uncertainly.

The raven nodded and pulled its beak further toward Chloe, incite her to take the ring. The blonde hesitated, but took the ring and held it close to her face, observing it in detail. The gem was really beautiful, that Chloe could not deny, and the ring itself was quite striking. The black color of the ring was similar to the plumage of the raven, which was as dark as ebony. Even so, that animal was beautiful in Chloe's eyes.

"Thanks, again..."

A soft squawk was what the blonde got in response before the raven took off again and headed for no particular place.

Chloe then sat up and examined the ring again, noticing that the only finger where the ring could fit properly was the thumb, so the blonde decided to use the ring on the thumb of her left hand, promising herself never to take off that gift of the raven.

* * *

It had been almost a year when Chloe received an unexpected visit at her house.

She was in her room, sitting on her bed while doing homework for the next day, when a noise in the window behind her caught her attention. So Chloe set aside her notebook and pencil and looked over her shoulder, surprised by what she saw.

The same raven that had defended her from the children and the one who had given her that ring was standing outside the window. The bird pecked gently at the window glass, apparently trying to get the attention of Chloe, who crawled across the bed to the window and opened it, letting the raven enter.

The raven walked across Chloe's bed, stopping by the notebook, watching what was in it.

Chloe smiled. "There's nothing interesting there. It's just homework."

The animal turned to Chloe before looking back at the notebook and inspecting it a little more. When the raven saw the pencil near the notebook, it quickly walked up to it and took it with its beak, then walked to Chloe and offered her the pencil.

The girl had sat in the Indian style by the window, and seeing the raven approach her with the pencil in her beak confused her, but at the same time it filled her with curiosity. Then Chloe kindly accepted the pencil offered by the raven.

"What do you want me to do with the pencil?"

The response she got surprised her.

"Draw me" The raven squawked softly.

Chloe's eyes widened, surprised by the bird's request and her ability to speak.

"You c-can talk?"

The raven tilted its head to the side before answering. "Imitate."

Chloe relaxed a bit at that response; the raven did not speak in itself, but imitated the human voice. Even so, the blonde was still surprised by the raven's request.

"So, you want me to draw you?" She asked uncertainly.

The raven nodded vigorously in response. Chloe inspected the pencil for a few moments before looking back at the animal, who apparently was excited, because the bird was jumping little and had its beak slightly open.

"But, why do you want me to draw you?"

The bird then turned its gaze to Chloe's notebook and approached it, inspecting it for a moment before pointing a claw at a corner of one of the pages of the notebook. Chloe moved closer to the raven and could see what the animal was pointing at.

It was a scribble of a butterfly, but the drawing was too detailed to be just that. The wings of the butterfly had been painted a bit dark blue and somehow bright.

Chloe sat down again Indian style while showing a small smile.

"But that's just a scribble" Chloe told the raven.

The bird shook its head vigorously and spread its wings, raising its beak towards Chloe.

"It's beautiful" The raven squawked.

The blonde was surprised more and more while more time spent with that animal.

"Do you really believe it?" Chloe asked quietly. Her voice seemed shaky and somewhat weak.

The raven retracted its wings and tilted its head for a moment, watching Chloe. The bird then took a few steps closer to the blonde and climbed onto one of her knees. The raven lifted its head and its eyes met Chloe's, and the girl felt that there was something else in them, but she could not identify what.

"I really believe it" The raven answered.

Chloe could not help but smile, and her eyes filled with tears; It was the first time that someone, except for her parents, told her that something she did was beautiful.

The blonde then caressed the raven as she had done that time when she first fed it. The animal seemed to accept the contact pleasantly, leaning on it and closing its eyes. Chloe could not ignore the fact that the raven's feathers really felt very soft, it almost seemed unnatural, but she did not want to pay attention to that at that moment.

Then Chloe stopped caressing the raven, who looked up again to see the blonde in the eyes. Chloe still had a smile on her face, and she looked at her new friend.

"Hey, if you really want me to draw you, you'll have to pose. I draw better if I can see the object that I am drawing, or in this case, the animal that I am drawing."

The raven was enthusiastic almost instantaneously, hopping slightly and opening its beak slightly while squawking softly.

Chloe giggled. "I think if you stand on the window sill and do some pose, I could draw you."

As soon as Chloe finished saying that, the raven flew quickly to the window and landed on the window sill, turning to face Chloe. The animal then turned its body a little to the right, staying diagonal to Chloe, and moved only its head towards the blonde. All those movements that the raven made formed a pose that the blonde loved, making her smile widely.

"Perfect" She said.

Chloe then took her notebook and her pencil and looked for a blank page to start making the sketch of the drawing. It did not take her long to do it, and then continue with the coloring and the shadows. The good thing is that Chloe was familiar with black and white, she preferred to make drawings of that style rather than color, so it was not difficult to color the raven and shade the background.

When she finished, Chloe examined the drawing. She had drawn the raven as the centerpiece of the drawing. The bird was standing on the sill of the window, just in the same position in which the raven was posing in the reality, and behind the animal you could see part of the front yard of the Price residence. The entire background of the drawing was shaded and colored in some shade of gray except for the raven, which was the only thing that was detailed and completely colored.

Chloe smiled at her drawing and put the pencil on the bed before looking up at the raven, who was still in the same pose.

"You can relax now, buddy."

The animal relaxed visibly, lowering its head and flapping its wings a bit, making Chloe laugh. The animal sat up and turned to the blonde, and she did not need to read the body language of the raven to know that the bird wanted to see the drawing. Then Chloe turned the notebook over and held it in front of her partner, letting it see the artwork on one of the pages.

The raven went a little closer to the notebook and watched the drawing with great interest. The bird was like that for about a minute before it took a few steps back and watched Chloe, who left the notebook on the bed when the raven it walked away.

"So, did you like it?" She asked uncertainly.

The raven gave little jumps while squawking: "Beautiful!" repeatedly. The bird really seemed cheerful, and that caused Chloe to smile widely.

At one point, the raven stopped jumping and squawking and looked at Chloe for a few seconds before looking towards the open window. The bird looked at the girl again before letting out a few words:

"I'll be right back."

That was all the raven said before flying out the window. Chloe remained motionless for a few seconds before looking down at her notebook, looking at the drawing she had made. She was proud of herself for that drawing, and if the raven said it was beautiful, then she would believe it.

Chloe returned to her homework moments later, and was like that for about 10 minutes before the raven returned, landing on the window sill. When Chloe turned to the animal, she was surprised again.

The raven carried a flower in its beak; a red carnation.

That animal did not stop surprising Chloe. First it saved her from the abusers, then it gave her a ring, then it talked to her asking her for a drawing telling her that she drawing very well and at the end it brought her a flower. If Chloe stopped to think about it a little, the raven's actions seemed almost romantic, but that was impossible.

The raven then walked until it was a few centimeters from Chloe and it offered her the flower. The blonde hesitated for a moment, but finally took the flower that the bird offered and brought it to her chest, cradling it with both hands. The raven watched her curiously, tilting its head slightly.

"Thank you" Chloe said as she looked at the flower in her hands, and this time she was really grateful.

The raven then moved closer to Chloe and climbed back onto her knee, raising its head so that its eyes met Chloe's. The bird squawked gently before getting off the girl's knee and walked to the window sill, giving the blonde one last look before flying out the window.

Chloe stayed there for a long time admiring the flower that the raven had given her, as well as occasionally glancing at the ring she had also received from the bird. That aquamarine embedded in the ring was really beautiful, just like the red carnation.

The blonde, after a while, decided to find a container to put the flower. When she found it and poured some water inside it, she put the flower in it and took the container to her room, where she left it on a shelf.

After that raven visit, Chloe nursed the red carnation as if her life depended on it.

* * *

The raven's visits became more regular, reaching the point where the animal was waiting for Chloe at home each time the girl arrived from school. As soon as Chloe passed through the front door, she immediately went to the backyard, where the raven was waiting to play.

Sometimes William was at home waiting for her, other times it was Joyce who did it, and very rarely were both adults waiting for her.

And it was just one of those rare times when Joyce and William were at home waiting for Chloe that the girl decided to introduce her feathered friend to her parents.

She was in the backyard playing with the raven, throwing a small branch to the bird for the animal to catch, as if it were a dog. But Chloe knew that that raven was nothing but playful, so playing with the bird did not seem strange to her, rather the opposite; Chloe enjoyed playing with the raven. She had even managed to get the animal to settle on her arm every time she extended it, and the raven always responded when Chloe called it.

At that point, at 12 years of age, Chloe and the raven were inseparable.

And when the raven flew towards her with the small branch in its beak, Chloe extended an arm and the bird quickly settled on it. The blonde then took the small branch and smiled at her friend.

"You're amazing" Chloe said.

The raven squawked her softly in response and fluttered its wings lightly.

Chloe giggled. "Hey, my parents are at home now. Is it okay if I introduce you to them?"

The bird tilted its head, as if thinking, but then nodded, causing Chloe to smile widely.

"Amazing! I'm sure you'll like them."

Chloe then released the small branch and headed for the sliding door. William was sitting at the dining table reading the newspaper while Joyce was in the kitchen doing the dishes. When Chloe entered the house, closing the sliding door behind her, William looked up from the newspaper and could not help but be surprised by what he saw.

"Chloe! Is that what I think it is?" He asked, unsure.

"A raven? Yes" Chloe replied.

"Hi" The crow squawked.

William was even more surprised by what the raven had said, and Joyce turned her attention away from the dishwasher, looking at Chloe with surprise.

"Honey, what are you doing with that animal?" Joyce asked from the kitchen.

"This raven has been accompanying me for years, mom. It's... very important to me."

Joyce and William frowned in confusion. The woman dried her hands and approached the dining room, standing next to her husband.

"And why is that?" William asked as he put the newspaper on the table.

"Many things" The raven squawked, spreading its wings a little. "Chloe is friend."

That surprised the adults, and it was not just because the raven apparently could speak, but because of what the bird had said. Joyce decided to talk then.

"Did you teach the raven to talk?"

Chloe shook her head. "It speak and act on its own."

The raven then jumped on Chloe's arm and fluttered a little until it was clear on the dining room table. The animal took a few steps until it was in front of William and Joyce, who watched the bird curiously. The raven looked at William before speaking.

"William" It squawked, then turned to the woman. "Joyce" It squawked again before turning around and looking at Chloe for a while. The raven then turned to Chloe's parents and the next thing it squawked was directed towards both adults. "Chloe is special. Thank you for taking care of her and loving her."

That surprised everyone, including Chloe.

William and Joyce had expressions of surprise on their faces. Chloe showed no hint of surprise on her face, but inside she was screaming: "What the hell?" because of the raven's words.

The girl then laid a hand on the table and the raven looked at her before walking up to her hand and climbing up it to perch on her forearm. Chloe put her arm to her chest and looked at the bird before looking at her parents. Their expressions of surprise had dimmed a bit, but they were still there.

"I swear, I did not teach it to say that" It was the first thing she could think to say. "Maybe I talked about you guys from time to time, b-but it speaks on its own."

Chloe's parents shared a look, and then both smiled and turned to their daughter and raven.

"Well, thank you, little friend" William told the bird. "Chloe can be a bit hyperactive sometimes, but I think Joyce and I have done a good job."

Chloe blushed a bit because of her father's words and looked away, but that did not stop her mother from speaking next.

"And we love her a lot, that's true. I'm glad that she and you are friends."

The raven spread its wings slightly and raised its beak before squawking: "Thank you."

William could not help but laugh, but Joyce just giggled.

"Now, young lady, where did you get that raven?" Joyce asked.

"Um, well" Chloe rubbed the back of her neck with her free hand. "The first time I saw it was when I was, um, about nine years old, I think. Since that day this friend and I have seen each other often and... it gave me some things."

William raised his eyebrows, surprised, and then leaned forward at the table, curious. A smile formed on his face as he watched his daughter and the raven.

"Really? What things did it give you?" He asked.

"Well, have you guys seen that flower I have in my room? That one on a shelf" Both adults nodded. "Welp, this buddy gave it to me."

The raven looked at Chloe, who looked back at it and smiled softly.

"Really?" Joyce asked.

"It's incredible" William interjected, oblivious to his wife's question, and apparently intrigued by what Chloe was telling. "What else?"

"Well..."

Chloe lowered her arm where the raven was perched and the bird, understanding what the girl was trying to say, got off the forearm and landed on the table. Chloe then looked at her left hand and removed the ring from her ring finger. She had grown up in the last year, so the ring she wore on her thumb ended up fitting perfectly on her ring finger.

The girl gave the ring to her father, who took it and approached his face. Joyce approached William and they both examined the ring. They did not overlook the gem embedded in the ebony; a very striking and bright aquamarine.

"Pretty, isn't it?" The raven suddenly squawked.

William and Joyce turned to the bird and both smiled.

That made Chloe show her own smile.

The raven just squawked merrily.

* * *

Chloe Price's only friend now was not only in her life, but in Joyce and William's as well. The raven now also interacted with Chloe's parents, but it was obvious to the entire Price family that the bird preferred to spend more time with the girl than with the adults.

The animal sometimes watched the members of the family from afar, sometimes approached them to watch them closely. It played with them, it brought them gifts, sometimes they even had conversations.

But there was a day when everything changed. And at that time Chloe was only 14 years old.

Joyce had left work earlier and had called William to come get her. The raven then had stayed with Chloe at home, and the blonde had decided to hang out doing more drawings of her friend. The raven really loved to pose for the drawings, and whenever it saw a picture of Chloe, the animal said it was beautiful.

The two friends spent their afternoon like that, happy, until Joyce came home accompanied by a couple of cops. Chloe, anguished, had asked her mother what was happening, and when she received the news that her father had died in a car accident, she broke up.

Chloe began to cry, to say that it could not be true, that it was not possible. But Joyce could not lie to her daughter about something like that, and she went on to say that William's death was real.

The raven could not do anything except watch the scene from the living room couch.

Three days after the terrible news, William's funeral took place. Several relatives and acquaintances attended the funeral, and Chloe and Joyce were in front of the coffin when the ceremony began. Although at a certain moment, a distinguished flutter of wings caught Chloe's attention. The girl looked up at the sky, trying to find the origin of that flutter. She soon found it when she spotted a dark figure flying towards them.

The raven, her friend, flew to land delicately on William's coffin. Chloe noticed that the bird carried a small bouquet of flowers in its beak, and was made up of violets and white lily flowers. The raven left the small bouquet of flowers on the coffin and then lowered its head, as if it really regretted the loss of that human being.

Chloe felt a lot of emotions at that moment.

She felt happy that her friend was there.

She felt sad about the death of her father.

She felt...

Her thoughts were forgotten as tears slid down her cheeks. Chloe could no longer keep the pain she brought with her, and that was a good time to release everything in the form of tears.

When the funeral ended, all the people began to leave, but not before leaving their condolences to Joyce and Chloe. Mother and daughter had arrived at the funeral by taxi, and they would take a taxi, so Joyce had stopped by the car that would take her and her daughter home while she waited for Chloe, who had leaned against the trunk of a tree.

Chloe looked up, and could only find the branches of the tree blocking her view. The raven was perched on a branch, watching Chloe. The blonde then extended an arm and the bird immediately flew towards her and landed on the girl's outstretched arm.

"I'm sorry" The raven squawked suddenly.

Chloe showed her friend a sad smile. "Don't worry, it's not your fault."

The raven lowered its head, apparently the loss of William had also affected the poor animal. But then the bird raised its head and pecked Chloe's cheek gently, surprising the girl. That made Chloe's smile a little happier, but there was still a hint of sadness in it.

"See you in the house, buddy?"

The raven nodded before spreading its wings and flying off to the Price residence. Chloe watched her friend go, and knowing that the raven would wait for her made her heart warm a little.

Was it possible to feel love for an animal? Did that make you a phenomenon?

If the answer was affirmative for both questions, then Chloe was fine with it.

At least she was not alone.

* * *

The years that followed were somewhat difficult.

The sadness that persecuted to the rest of the Price family wasn't made wait, and mother and daughter had to fight it with nails and teeth so that they did not end up being consumed by that feeling. At least the new friend of the family made sure to bring some happiness to both women, usually by bringing gifts (among which were flowers and all kinds of jewelry) or playing with Chloe and cheering Joyce with its antics.

Things were improving little by little, and both Chloe and Joyce were resuming their lives; the woman went back to work in Two Whales with a smile on her face and the girl continued with the school, arriving to be accepted with a full scholarship in the Blackwell Academy; her faithful winged companion always made a smile appear on her face every time she saw it watching her on the branch of some tree around the school.

It was not long before Chloe began classes at her new school, and although at the beginning she found again with the type of students that she had to endure as a child, managed to ignore them and push them aside, keeping the good the school offered her. During that time, Chloe cut her hair, leaving some strands of hair up to her ears, and she liked it, so she decided to leave it like that. Several students noticed the change of look of Chloe, she even managed to relate a little with some people; a certain Dana Ward and a boy named Hayden Jones were among those people.

But the most outstanding of all those people was a girl named Rachel Amber.

After their strange meeting, and having a crazy day together, both girls had become practically inseparable. If anyone saw them together, that person would immediately think that those girls had always been best friends, and Chloe and Rachel felt that way; as if they had known each other all their lives.

Chloe ended up knowing Rachel completely and vice versa, but Chloe still had to tell her friend something else. She had not had any human friends before Rachel, and Chloe wanted her feathered friend and human friend to meet.

That's why Chloe, at 17 years old, decided to meet Rachel in their lair away from everything; the American Rust, the junkyard.

Chloe was lying on the hood of one of the many rusted cars that surrounded the place with her arms behind her head, lost in her world. That's why she did not listen when an elusive Rachel approached her and practically jumped on her, surprising her. Chloe let out a scream of surprise while Rachel just laughed out loud.

"Damn it, Rach, you almost gave me a heart attack" Chloe complained half jokingly.

Rachel giggled. "Oh, come on, Chloe, it wasn't that bad."

Chloe snorted, but Rachel just laughed in response and sat next to Chloe on the hood of that rusted car.

"So, why is the infamous Chloe Price asking for a meeting with me?"

Chloe looked at Rachel with an unreadable expression, but could not help but smile a little.

"What? Can't I meet my best friend in our secret lair?" She teased.

Rachel raised an eyebrow, skeptical, but her smile was still present.

"I'm not opposed to that idea, Price, I also like to meet you here and drink, smoke or do something stupid, but I know you enough to know you're up to something."

"I promise that this time is not bad at all."

"You said that last time and you almost ended up burning the forest" Rachel reproached.

Chloe looked away. "Ok, I admit it, that didn't end up being a good idea in the end" She murmured before turning back to look at Rachel. "But today I just want to introduce you to someone, I'm not going to do something crazy."

Rachel scrutinized at Chloe as that girl got off the hood of the car and took a few steps to stop in the middle of the dirt road. Chloe then looked around before turning completely to Rachel with a smile. The long-haired blonde smiled back.

"Now you got me a little intrigued" Rachel said. "Who is that person you want to introduce me to?"

Chloe hesitated a bit before speaking. "It's not a person, but... it's a friend. It's almost part of the family."

That made Rachel's look change from mischievous to confused. The phrase 'A friend who is not a person' could confuse anyone, but it only took Rachel to use a bit of common sense to make her think that Chloe was probably referring to a dog or a cat or something like that.

Rachel did not expect that when Chloe whistled melodically and extended her arm that such friend would come out of nowhere and land on Chloe's outstretched arm. She did not expect that friend to bring a trio of flowers, mauve dahlias to be exact, in its beak.

The raven had really made a spectacular entrance.

Chloe kept her smile all the time, exchanging glances between the bird and the girl sitting on the hood of the rusted car, who now had a surprised expression.

"I know it may seem strange, but those flowers are for you" Chloe explained as she looked at Rachel shyly.

That surprised Rachel even more. "For me?"

The raven spread its wings and flew from Chloe's arm to Rachel and then landed next to her. The animal then looked up for its eyes to meet Rachel's and brought its beak to her. Rachel hesitated a little before grabbing the flowers the raven offered her, but the surprises did not end there.

"For you" The raven squawked suddenly, surprising and scaring Rachel a little. "Thank you."

Rachel blinked, she didn't know how to react to what was happening; everything was too surreal.

"W-Why do you thank me?" Rachel stammered, which surprised Chloe; she never saw that girl stutter, not even when they were alone.

The raven tilted its head before answering. "For being there for Chloe."

That surprised both girls.

Chloe already knew in advance that her friend feathered did unexpected things, but she never expected that animal to say something like that. Prior to her meeting with Rachel, Chloe had been thinking that the raven would probably bring a flower with it; Chloe knew the bird well, but what the raven had told Rachel was unexpected.

Rachel then observed the small bouquet of flowers in her hand, briefly smelling the fragrance of these before looking again at the raven, who apparently watched her curiously.

Then the girl smiled. "It's a pleasure. Chloe is a great person."

"She is" The raven answered immediately.

Chloe could not help but blush a little at the words of her friends, but a smile was beginning to form on her face. Rachel, meanwhile, used her free hand to caress the raven's head, who made no noise or movement against it; moreover, the animal even seemed pleased by the affection, even released a small and almost imperceptible squawk of joy.

Rachel giggled. "Does this friend have a name?"

Chloe was in her own thoughts when that question came out of Rachel's lips, so she blinked and shook her head slightly before answering.

"Um, no, the truth is no... Actually, I never considered it necessary" Chloe said as she scratched the back of her neck with one hand and shrugged.

"You never considered it?" Rachel turned to Chloe, but did not stop caressing the raven. "How long have you known this little friend?"

Chloe grimaced as she extended an arm and whistled melodically, drawing the raven's attention, who quickly left its position with Rachel to fly up to Chloe's outstretched arm and land on it. Rachel pouted when the bird moved away from her; The long-haired blonde wanted to caress the animal a little more, but soon her expression became serious when she noticed the seriousness in Chloe's face.

"This raven has been with me ever since I was a child, Rach" Chloe explained as she looked at her feathered friend, who stared back at her.

"Really?" Rachel's eyebrows rose in surprise.

"Yeah. This friend has helped me a lot..." Chloe turned to the girl. "More than what you believe."

Rachel inclined her head slightly, curious. "I'm glad to hear that, but at the same time it seems curious and incredible that a raven has been with you for so long. And yet you have not given it a name?"

"As I said, it never seemed important to me."

Rachel hummed thoughtfully before getting off the rusted car's hood and approaching Chloe and the raven.

"You know? There are those who think that the raven is a kind of guide" Rachel said suddenly.

"Uh, what?" Chloe looked truly confused.

Rachel just giggled. "They are legends, beliefs, each animal symbolizes something, and the ravens symbolize several things."

There was a sudden silence that lasted only a minute, but the blondes seemed an hour. The silence did not break until Rachel spoke again.

"What if that raven on your arm was your guide?"

Those words echoed deep in Chloe's mind, and she then turned to the bird, who saw her directly in the eyes. Chloe could see that there was something else in those dark eyes; that made her think that raven was special.

And not only because Rachel has made a spiritual comment about that animal...

...but because Chloe always thought that the raven was not normal (in a good way).

That Rachel mentioned that fact that ravens are a kind of guide only reaffirmed Chloe's intuitions about her feathered friend.

"Hmm, I think you have to give it a name" Rachel said suddenly, pulling Chloe out of her thoughts. The raven turned to Rachel, who smiled at it. "What do you say, buddy? Do you have any suggestions for a name?"

Both girls watched as the bird spread its wings slightly before squawking merrily:

"Max!"

Chloe's eyes widened. That was fast. "Max?" Chloe asked the raven. "That was a little abrupt and sudden, dude. Are you sure?"

The bird looked at Chloe and nodded vigorously, making the girls smile. That raven was sometimes too adorable.

"Okay, Max will be" Chloe said, receiving a cheerful squawk from the raven.

Rachel watched the bird carefully as she touched her chin with her index finger, thoughtful; that name had come out very hastily, almost as if the raven had already planned to answer that if asked what name it wanted to have.

Although maybe Rachel was thinking too much about that, it was just an animal after all, and the animals are unpredictable.

Then, suddenly, something happened to Rachel, and that caused a wide smile to form on her face.

"Now I'm wondering" She began, drawing the attention of Chloe and the raven, "if the name chosen was 'Max', does that mean the raven is male?"

Chloe looked confused at her smiling friend, so Rachel decided to give a little more light to the matter, with her broad smile still on her face.

"I mean, we'll have to make sure, isn't it? We don't want to call a female with a male name and vice versa, right? You'll have to find out if the name is right for your friend with black feathers, Chloe."

Chloe's confusion dissipated little by little until Rachel's words were correctly processed in Chloe's mind.

She could only look with horror, stupefaction and a little disgust at Rachel.

"No way I'm revising it down there" Chloe declared.

Rachel could not help but laugh.

* * *

One year passed very quickly, and Chloe was about to turn 18 years old. Her mother had offered to make a small celebration at the diner, but Chloe had kindly rejected her, although the reason why she rejected her mother's offer was to avoid having to spend her birthday with David Madsen, her stepfather and ex-military, who had married Joyce a short time ago. No need to say that he and Chloe did not get along much from the beginning, and their relationship has not improved but it has not gotten worse either.

Chloe decided not to think about that and preferred to spend her birthday in her own way. She had asked Rachel if she wanted to leave for a while, but the girl had answered that she could not leave her house because she was being punished; apparently her father had found some weed hidden in her room, and the punishment was immediate. Chloe had seized the moment and recommended that Rachel that next time hide her weed somewhere other than her own home, although Chloe was already taking risks by hiding a small cache of weed under her bed, and it had been pure luck that David had not found it yet.

It was a pity that Rachel could not accompany her, but Chloe did not give much importance, because she still had someone to hang out with.

If you asked Chloe how the hell she ended up walking through the woods of Arcadia Bay, she would probably answer you with an indifferent shrug. At this point, Chloe had gone through a rebellious stage (in Joyce's words); dye half her hair blue, a few piercings, punk clothes and even a sleeve tattoo on her right arm. The tattoo was a work of art; a bouquet of red flowers being surrounded by a ribbon of the same color, together with a golden skull found between the stems of the flowers. The flowers were surrounded by a vine of thorns, but there were several blue butterflies around the tattoo. It had undoubtedly been done by a good artist.

A squawk resounded through the air, drawing Chloe's attention, who looked up at the sky to try to find the origin of the sound. She soon saw the raven fly over her, until the animal flew to a tree near Chloe and landed on one of the branches.

The gazes of Chloe and Max (the girl had already gotten used to calling the raven that way) crossed over, and the blonde smiled at her friend, who responded with a cheerful squawk. Chloe extended an arm and Max quickly flew towards her until landing on her outstretched arm. The raven then pecked Chloe's cheek gently, an action she started doing often, and Chloe did not complain about it.

"I'm glad you're here" Chloe said between giggles.

"I'm glad to see you" Max squawked.

The blonde laughed softly and stroked the raven's feathers with her free hand before she started walking back into the woods.

The walk lasted a good 30 minutes before Max began flapping her wings a little, trying to get Chloe's attention.

"What's wrong, Max?"

"Gift" The raven squawked. "I have a gift for you."

Chloe was not very surprised, but still a smile formed on her face. The girl was accustomed to receiving gifts from Max, and that red carnation that the bird gave her almost 7 years ago was still in the Price residence (technically it was now the Madsen residence, but for Chloe it would always be 'Price'). The ebony ring with an aquamarine imbedded in it was still on the ring finger of Chloe's left hand, and she never forgot to put it on as soon as she woke up.

"And what is that gift you have for me?" Chloe asked, leaving her thoughts behind and focusing on the present.

"Follow me" That was all Max said before leaving Chloe's arm and flying through the woods with one destination in mind.

The punk walked through the forest while following the raven, always keeping an eye on the animal. It was not long before Max landed on the branch of a tree, waiting for Chloe to reach its location. When the girl reached the tree where her friend was waiting for her, she could not miss something that she saw a few meters away from her, something that surprised her.

A tree house stood on top of the branches of a large tree. The wooden planks looked a bit wasted, but the structure seemed stable. The structure was surrounded by a balcony, with a fence around to prevent the occupants from falling. The most striking of all was that the tree house seemed to have been there for a long time, maybe even years.

The raven then abandoned its position and flew to the tree house, entering it. Chloe did not have to wait long for a rope ladder to fall from an opening inside the tree house and reach the ground. She did not wait long to go up the stairs and climb up to the tree house. When Chloe reached the interior of the structure, the first thing that caught her attention were the dozens of flowers that were scattered around. Some were placed in vases, others were on the floor, but there was a certain order, in addition to making the whole place look colorful.

Chloe averted her gaze to Max, who had perched on the window sill of one of the treehouse windows. Both were practically face to face, and both looked each other in the eye.

"So, is this the surprise?" Chloe asked as she stood up and looked around.

"No" The raven answered.

"What is the gift then?"

The bird's eyes gleamed with something Chloe could not identify before that, out of nowhere, a dense smoke surrounded the raven. Chloe, scared, took a small step back, but when the smoke dissipated, that feeling was replaced by surprise.

And what a surprise it was.

Where there was only a raven a few seconds ago, now there was a brunette sitting on the window sill. Her brown hair almost reached her shoulders, her blue eyes were what stood out most of her, and the freckles around her cheeks and nose did not go unnoticed by Chloe. The girl's outfit consisted of a white jacket with the sleeves rolled up to the elbows over a purple T-shirt, along with white dress pants and sneakers of the same color. She also wore three orange, green and blue bracelets respectively on her right wrist. Chloe could not help but think that the brunette's appearance differed greatly with the black plumage and dark eyes of the raven.

"Hi, Chloe" The brunette said suddenly, smiling.

"...Max?" That was all Chloe could say at that moment.

"In the flesh" Max giggled before continuing. "Happy birthday, Chloe" She said tenderly.

The blonde shook her head slightly, still in shock from what she had just witnessed. The raven, her childhood friend, had transformed into that beautiful girl... How do you react to something like that? And at what point did Chloe think that girl was beautiful?

"I know this seems strange and maybe sudden" Max explained as she got off the window sill, apparently oblivious to the mental battle that Chloe was having, "but today is your eighteenth birthday, and I wanted to surprise you and give you a nice gift, you know? You really deserve it..." That last sentence was whispered and almost seemed full of pain and sadness.

The punk left her thoughts aside and looked into the deep blue eyes of the girl in front of her. It was then that Chloe processed everything Max had said up to that point.

"Do I deserve it...?" Chloe's voice sounded small, weak.

Max hesitated a bit before answering. "Yes, you deserve something good after all the shit you've been through."

Those words hit Chloe (in a good way); No one, not even Rachel, had said something like that before.

Then the punk began to remember all her encounters with the raven: the time when the bird protected her from those children, when it gave her the ring and the flower, when the raven showed its respect for the death of William, and all those times in which that animal would bring out her a smile and make her forget the world for once, leaving only happy moments.

"So, all this time, that raven was..."

"Me? Yes" Max seemed shy at the time, rocking back and forth lightly with the tips of her feet and with her hands behind her back.

Chloe smiled and could not help giggling. "Thanks... for everything."

It was Max's turn to smile. It was a shy and embarrassed smile, but there was happiness in it.

"You're welcome. So, do you like your gift?" Max gestured to herself, trying to explain what she was referring to.

Chloe scrutinized Max, and her smile widened unconsciously.

"Yes, I would be lying if I said it's not amazing" Chloe hesitated a bit before saying her next words. "But, what are you exactly?"

Max's smile disappeared and she looked away for a few seconds before looking back at Chloe.

"A spirit."

That made Chloe frowns in confusion, so Max decided to explain the situation a little more.

"Remember what your friend Rachel had said about me in the junkyard?"

"Um, y-yeah, that the ravens are kind of like guides or something. Why do you ask?"

"Well, she was not completely wrong" Max looked away again, not wanting to see Chloe directly at that moment. "Yes, I am a spirit, but I am also a guide, a... protector."

"A protector?" Chloe said slowly, more to herself than to an answer.

Max sighed and turned to Chloe. "You see, the spirits are like guardian angels of the people, but only some humans are fortunate enough to be protected by them."

The brunette took a few steps forward, almost a meter away from Chloe. It was at that moment that the blonde realized that Max was practically half a head shorter than her. Both girls looked into each other's eyes now, none of them wanting to look away.

"Each spirit decides which human wants to protect, although there are others who prefer to be only spectators and not to interfere in the lives of humans. In my case, well" Max smiled at Chloe, "I think you already know the answer."

A small comfortable silence settled for a few seconds until Chloe decided to break it.

"...Why did you choose me?" Chloe was so fragile, almost as if her 9-year-old being was speaking at that moment.

Max took a few steps closer to the blonde. "Do you think I didn’t see how they made fun of you? You think I didn’t notice how you pretended to be okay with no one around you?" Max's words were soft, but Chloe could not help a couple of tears starting to form at the corners of her eyes. "I would be a monster if I stayed watching everything as if it were a movie, so I intervened that day... I could not forgive myself if I let things go on like this."

The brunette moved even closer to Chloe, and now they were only centimeters apart, but the blonde did not think it was wrong for Max to approach her in that way, she rather felt that act of the brunette... comforting.

Chloe, at that moment, did not expect that Max would take her hands. The blue eyes of the blonde never left those of the brunette, and Chloe did nothing to try to stop the tears that were beginning to slide down her cheeks.

"So I decided to approach you, give you things just to make you smile, share happy moments with you. Seeing you happy was all that mattered to me..." Max paused a little, her eyes getting a little wet, as if tears were about to come out of them. "When William died and I saw how sad you were, I could not allow you to go back to the dark hole they took you to when you were a little girl. That's why I practically never separated from you or your mother; making them smile at you two was my only goal."

Chloe was fighting hard with herself in an attempt not to pounce on Max and hug her just to show her how grateful she was for everything.

"And knowing that you now have a true friend and that you are about to graduate from high school makes me very happy" Max smiled. "You've changed a lot, but you're still the same Chloe Price I've known for a long time... I'm proud of the person you've become, Chloe, and I'm sure William would say the same."

She could not take it anymore; Chloe closed her eyes and let the tears fall like waterfalls. The blonde was sobbing, and Max was not long in cupping Chloe's cheeks to wipe away the tears with her thumbs. Chloe dropped her head on Max's shoulder and her arms wrapped around the brunette's waist, pulling her into a hug. Max wrapped her arms around Chloe's neck and rested her head on the blonde's shoulder in an attempt to comfort her.

Maybe Max was a spirit, but Chloe felt that that brunette was more real than hell.

And that was the first time in a long time that Chloe Price did not shed tears of sadness, but of happiness.

* * *

After that day, many meetings between the two girls followed.

Chloe and Max had more encounters in the tree house, with Max showing herself in her human form more and more (the fact that Chloe kindly asked her to do it had nothing to do, for sure). Their meetings become regular; both girls would be seen in the tree house at a certain time and would have a good time there, usually until the sun came out or hid, depending on what time they were.

Sometimes when Chloe left Blackwell in the afternoons, she could see a certain raven observing her from the branch of a tree and the blonde would smile at her feathered friend, who would respond with a soft 'rrok'. Rachel sometimes even played with the bird in the junkyard, and soon the raven earned Rachel's love, but her friendship did not compare to Max’s and Chloe.

That friendship grew by leaps and bounds, and Chloe began to think that what she felt for Max was not just friendship, but maybe something else. But the brunette was a spirit, she was practically not human, how could a person fall in love with someone like that?

Chloe Price, apparently.

The fact that Max was loving did not help much to the situation of the blonde (although, if Chloe was sincere with herself, she was not at all against the samples of affection of the brunette); give hugs almost all the time, holding hands while walking through the woods of Arcadia Bay, the brunette had even come to give the odd kiss on the cheek to the blonde, and the latter sometimes did as well. Oh, and being the most adorable thing Chloe has ever seen did not help either.

At that point, Chloe accepted that she had become accustomed to all those singularities of Max. It is not that she was against, but quite the opposite.

All those thoughts were in Chloe's mind as she and Max lay on the floor of the tree house. The blonde was sitting Indian style while the head of the brunette rested in the lap of Chloe. The latter gently stroked Max's brown hair, and both girls had small smiles on their faces.

The light of the moon passed through the windows of the tree house, making it seem as if the flowers scattered around shone. The moonlight also highlighted the freckles on Max's face, and Chloe could not help thinking that the girl looked beautiful.

"Hey, Max" Chloe called almost in a whisper.

"Hmm?" Max hummed in response, without opening her eyes.

"I've been asking myself something for a while now."

The brunette opened her eyes slightly. "Shoot."

The blonde hesitated a bit before saying her next words. "What is your real name?"

Max giggled. "What makes you think that 'Max' is not my real name?"

"Well, first of all, it doesn’t seem like a very suitable name for a pretty girl like you" Chloe realized a little late of the words she had just said, but she pretended not to notice. Max, on the other hand, had a little blush on her cheeks, but she was still smiling. "Although, strangely, it suits you very well" She teased.

The brunette gave the blonde a playful blow on the shoulder, and both girls laughed softly.

"But seriously, I doubt very much if that is your real name" said Chloe when the laughter subsided.

"It's fine. You're right, that's not my real name, it's just a short form of it."

Chloe raised an eyebrow, confused, prompting Max to continue.

The brunette giggled. "It's like when I call you 'Chlo' instead of 'Chloe'."

"Ah, then you speak of a nickname."

Max hummed thoughtfully before making a small grimace.

"Nah, not much, but if you want to see it that way."

Chloe shook her head while smiling, and continued stroking Max's hair.

"Ok, enough of going around the branches. What is your full name?"

"Ugh" Max complained in feigned exasperation. "Maxine."

The blonde watched the brunette for a few seconds and tilted her head to the side. Chloe's smile widened a bit and she giggled; The blonde now played with Max's brown locks, wrapping them in her fingers.

"I think it's a cute name" Chloe said softly.

That made Max's cheeks flush a little, and the brunette's smile became shy. Then Max raised a hand to Chloe's face and ran her fingertips over the blue tips of Chloe's blond locks.

"Thanks, Chloe... It's the first time someone tells me that" Max's voice was just as soft as the one Chloe used earlier. "Although for you it will always be Max, never Maxine."

 _And there goes the mood_ , Chloe thought, but she could not help but roll her eyes playfully.

"Alright, Max will be."

The brunette laughed softly before getting up and standing up. The blonde stayed where she was while watching Max walk around the tree house, apparently looking for something among so many flowers. Max was a few minutes like that, until when she looked around a corner she was able to find what she was looking for.

Max kept her hands behind her back as she turned to Chloe and walked towards her. When the brunette stopped in front of the blonde, the latter stood up and looked at Max with a smile and a raised eyebrow.

"What's behind your back, Maximus?" Chloe asked, amused. Max liked the fact that the blonde had used one of the many nicknames she had devised for her.

"It's, um, well" The brunette hesitated a bit and looked away for a few seconds before looking back at Chloe. Max then let out a sigh before continuing. "This is probably going to sound strange, but I don’t want to miss this opportunity."

Chloe now looked confused at the brunette, who did not hesitate to take her hands off her back and offer the blonde what she held in them: a bouquet of lavender roses and blue roses, the stems of the flowers wrapped with a red bow. Seeing what Max held in her hands, the expression of the blonde went from confused to surprised and a small blush formed on her cheeks.

"I really don’t know how to say this, I was never good with words and that's why I prefer to express myself with actions, so I'll go straight to the point" Max said, her blue eyes now fixed on Chloe's. "Chloe Price, I've known you for a long time and I think you're an amazing person. If I could, and I'm sure I really can, I'd give you a gift every day of the year just to show you how much I appreciate you and love you. I never thought I'd fall in love with a human, but I'm glad you're the one who stole my heart."

The brunette stepped forward and gently pushed the bouquet of roses to Chloe's chest, who grabbed it as if it were the most fragile thing in the world. Max lowered her hands to her sides without looking away from the blonde.

"I just want you to know how deeply I care for you and that I will always be by your side both here and in the afterlife. I love you, Chloe Pri-"

Before Max could finish the sentence, Chloe's lips were already on hers; God, Chloe Price was kissing her. The brunette was shocked for almost two seconds before reacting and beginning to return the kiss. It was gentle and calm, even comforting, and that was all that both girls wanted at that moment.

Chloe wrapped her arms around Max's waist, holding the bouquet with one hand. The brunette, meanwhile, wrapped her arms around the blonde's neck. They continued the kiss until Max felt a salty taste on her lips. The brunette reluctantly separated from the kiss and watched Chloe's face; her blue eyes slightly reddened and the occasional tear sliding down her left cheek, but a big smile adorned her face.

A small, embarrassed and shy smile formed on Max's face before she ran the knuckles of one of her hands delicately down Chloe's cheek, wiping the few tears that had escaped the blonde.

"Look what you do to me, Mad Max, I'm getting soft. You're ruining my punk image" Chloe teased in mock annoyance.

Max giggled. "We both know that under that punk aesthetic there is a very sweet and sensitive girl."

"Aw, shut up" Chloe said, giving Max a playful shove.

As if it were something automatic, both girls put their foreheads together while looking into each other's eyes, even with their smiles on their faces.

"Why were you crying?" Max asked softly.

The blonde was silent for a few moments before deciding to answer.

"Because I love you too, Max" Chloe replied as gently as the brunette, "and I've never felt so happy in my life."

Chloe and Max put their lips together again in a small kiss before putting their foreheads together again. They were like this for several minutes, only enjoying the presence of the other. It was not until the blonde spoke that the silence broke.

"Did... Did a human ever fall in love with a spirit?" She asked timidly.

Max looked directly into Chloe's blue eyes and smiled, giggling before giving the blonde a little kiss on the nose.

"You would be surprised at the answer."

And with that said, Max stepped forward to kiss Chloe again, who made sure to return the kiss.

The rest of the night consisted basically of kisses, laughter and Max's explanation of what the roses she gave to Chloe meant, plus the meaning of the rest of the flowers that were scattered around the tree house.

None of the girls noticed, but an owl had watched the entire scene between Max and Chloe in the distance, from the branch of a tree.

* * *

The hours that Max least enjoys are where Chloe is at school. Yes, Max can observe her friend (or girlfriend?) from the branch of a tree or from the tip of the Tobanga totem that is in the gardens of Blackwell's bedrooms, but it is not the same to be a raven and observe someone from afar than to be physically with that special person. Max sometimes feels like a stalker when she is a raven and observes Chloe at a safe distance and not at all suspicious, but it is her job after all.

Max is a spirit, she chose to protect Chloe and doesn’t regret having done it.

Max does not regret having fallen in love with that blonde.

But Max sometimes thinks of certain things, things she would not be thinking about now if she had not met Chloe in the first place, if she had not fallen in love with her.

When those kinds of thoughts invade Max's mind, she can’t help but regret a little about her unconscious choice to fall in love with Chloe Price.

But as soon as those thoughts arrive, they vanish, and Max goes back to living in ignorance once more.

Although sometimes someone is responsible for bringing Max back to reality, reminding her of what she chose and the consequences that her election could entail. And that someone always comes in the form of a little spider. This time, that animal climbed the trunk of a tree in the middle of the forest. The spider then climbed up the trunk to reach a branch and walk on it until it almost collided with a kind of cloth, of those that are worn on clothes.

The spider did not need to look up to see who the fabric belonged to (a pair of trousers, the spider noticed). An outstretched hand approached the spider, and the animal quickly climbed into it and felt it being lifted slowly. When the hand stopped, the spider's eight eyes met with a pair of blue eyes surrounded by freckles.

"Hi, Kelly" Max said with a giggle. "I sensed that you would come at some point."

The brunette then returned to leave the spider on the branch, and as Max had done with Chloe, a dense smoke surrounded the spider and seconds later dissipated, revealing a girl. She was a redhead, with her long hair tied in a ponytail. Her eyes were green and she had a few freckles around her cheeks, but they did not come close to the amount that Max had. The only item of clothing that the redhead wore was a strapless black dress that reached to her knees. Purple tendrils adorned the lobes of her ears and her feets were bare.

Max and Kelly were now sitting on the branch of the tree, their legs were in the air and both girls took advantage of that to balance them slightly.

"So, what is this visit for?" Max said without looking at Kelly.

There was a moment of silence before the redhead's voice could be heard.

"I think you already know, Maxine" Kelly replied in a serious yet gentle tone.

The redhead was the only one who dared to call Max by her full name, and the brunette really could not do much about it. Kelly calling her that way had become something that characterized the redhead, and Max had long since decided to let Kelly call her 'Maxine'.

"It's because of Chloe, right?"

Kelly turned to Max with a worried expression on her face.

"You know well that I'm not against anything, I only worry about you."

Max sighed and closed her eyes. "I know, Kelly."

"And you also know what could happen, or in this case, what could not happen."

The brunette opened her eyes slightly, looking at the ground and shaking her head a little.

"I've never felt like this. It's so unfair" said Max looking up and looking at no place in particular.

Kelly turned her gaze away from Max. "It's unfair to all of us, Maxine" She said with a hint of sadness in her voice. "I mean, the spirits are forbidden to fall in love with a human, but it's hard not to when we spend so much time protecting one."

Max then looked at Kelly and the redhead looked back at her. The green-eyed girl looked sad, even a little dejected, and it was then that the brunette understood what was happening.

"He has not come back yet, right?" Max asked softly.

Kelly smiled sadly and shook her head.

"I'm sorry" Max sounded very sincere.

"Don’t worry" Kelly said and turned her gaze to the forest that surrounded them. "I still have faith that I'll see him again."

Max also turned her gaze to the forest. "I hope so."

A comfortable silence settled between the two girls, only with the sounds of nature ringing around them; the birds singing, the wind moving slightly the branches of the trees, the hooting of an owl.

Minutes later, Kelly decided to break the silence by making a funny observation.

"You know? I think it's somewhat ironic."

"Hmm?" Max turned to Kelly. "What are you talking about?"

The redhead looked at the brunette and gave her a funny little smile.

"Look at you, you're dating a human girl, you're her girlfriend, and if my memory doesn’t fail me, you always told me you didn’t want to fall in love" Kelly said.

Max could not help but chuckle a little and smile before turning her gaze away from Kelly.

"Sometimes I forget it."

That was all Max said before the dense smoke surrounded her and a raven flew out of the smoke, heading somewhere in particular.

Kelly watched the raven leave, and the redhead could not help but shake her head as she smiled.

* * *

The time passed quickly for Max and Chloe, but that only made both girls treasure even more the moments they shared together. Although, of course, they also shared moments with Rachel and Joyce, and they could not deny that they had enjoyed them, even David had had a little fun with the antics of a certain raven.

Things were going well for the Price-Madsen family, and soon Chloe's 19th birthday was celebrated. On that occasion, her mother and stepfather decided to celebrate with a cake that Joyce made at the Price residence, with Rachel and Max also present. The raven was practically perched on Chloe's left shoulder all the time, and the punk did not complain about it.  _"You look like a pirate with Max perched on your shoulder"_  Rachel had told Chloe with a mocking smile. The raven had responded with an 'Arrr', imitating the classic pirate monosyllable. Chloe and Rachel could not help but laugh at the animal's joke.

The rest of the day went by normally, with some laughter here and there, especially from Chloe, who never stopped smiling. Punk also received several gifts, and among them was one that would not have been expected even in a million years; Apparently David had used his free time to do some maintenance on Chloe's truck and leave it better than the blonde had found it. David had made the truck work better and it did not seem like it would stop working in the middle of the road, but the exterior was still the same; rust, dents, scratches, and Chloe really preferred it that way, she said it was the natural charm of her vehicle.

That's why, the day after her birthday party, Chloe decided to take a few laps around Arcadia Bay with her truck; the blonde would judge the work of her stepfather herself. At first, the truck seemed to work well (as David had mentioned), even that annoying noise that was heard every time the engine of the vehicle started had disappeared. Chloe should give David a point for that.

It was not until shortly after that things took an unexpected turn.

Chloe was stopped at a red light, waiting for her turn. When the light changed to green, Chloe's truck had advanced only a few meters before a vehicle that went too fast crashed into the driver's side of the truck.

The fact that such an accident had happened in broad daylight was already disconcerting, but the scene that remained after the crash did not improve things; broken glass scattered on the asphalt, vehicles destroyed until they were almost crushed and puddles of blood beginning to form around the vehicles. It really was grotesque to have been just a car accident.

Ambulances and police cars soon arrived at the scene, and the paramedics soon took the people involved in the accident from their respective vehicles to take them as soon as possible to the hospital.

Don’t have to be a genius to intuit how the relatives and friends of Chloe Price reacted when receiving a phone call informing about the unfortunate accident.

* * *

It's funny how life can change so drastically in an instant.

At one point you see that person to laugh and smile like they never did and the next you see them in a hospital bed, with tubes, intravenous and bandages all over their body.

Chloe had survived the accident, but with severe injuries and had entered into a coma.

The other driver had died on the way to the hospital.

Max didn’t know whether to feel good about the death of the person who caused the accident or to cry about the state in which her beloved was. Maybe both, but that would not change the past.

What Max would give for having the power to rewind time and prevent that disaster from happening.

Max never saw Joyce cry as disconsolately as she did in that situation, not even her crying at William's funeral was so loud. The brunette supposed that losing a husband and losing a daughter in the course of a few years could break anyone.

David also shed tears upon hearing what happened to Chloe, and he had tried as much as possible to comfort Joyce, although his attempts were almost in vain. David and his stepdaughter may not have got along quite well at first, but deep down he loved her like a daughter. Too bad he could never express that to Chloe before the accident happened.

Rachel did not fare well either, and Max would bet the blonde had shed an ocean of tears just like Joyce. But even so, Rachel decided to spend time in Chloe's room during visiting hours, reading her friend some books or telling her about Blackwell's latest gossip. And when the news of the accident reached the ears of several students who were Chloe's friends, they did not hesitate to visit the comatose girl from time to time and give their condolences to Joyce and David.

And Max... She never left the room where Chloe was hospitalized.

The nurses and doctors who sometimes passed through the room to check Chloe's condition could not help but find a raven perched on the window sill of the only window in the room. Sometimes the animal was there on the sill, sometimes they found it huddled next to Chloe at night, and no matter how much they tried to scare away the raven, the bird always stayed in the room. There was a time when a nurse brought food to the raven, but the animal never tasted it, only focused on being with Chloe.

Shortly after Chloe was admitted to the hospital, Max had heard a conversation between Joyce and a doctor, with the woman saying that her health insurance could not cover the expenses if they continued like this. The doctor had then mentioned to the woman, very reluctantly, that Chloe practically had no chance of waking up again. Joyce had not taken it very well, but she must accept the situation. Then the doctor had no choice but to ask Joyce if she wanted to disconnect Chloe.

Joyce, because of her financial situation and the poor prognosis the doctor had given her, said yes.

And it was for that reason that Max was standing next to a comatose Chloe at 2 o'clock in the early morning. They would disconnect Chloe in the morning, and Max could not afford to let Chloe die without first having a closure.

The brunette watched with deep sadness as the blonde's chest rose and fell slightly, although she knew that this was due to a machine and not to Chloe's own body.

"I'm sorry..." She whispered, her voice full of remorse and sadness. "I should... I should have foreseen it somehow..."

The beeping of the heart monitor was the only thing that broke the silence of the room.

"I had to protect you, I had to save you, and what did I do?... I failed you..."

Max's voice was beginning to break; the brunette was trying to contain the sobs and tears that were beginning to appear at the corners of her eyes.

"Now Joyce, David, Rachel, everyone is devastated by this situation..." Max took a deep breath before continuing to speak. "And it's all my fault... Because I couldn’t protect you..."

The brunette then took one of Chloe's inert hands and interlaced her fingers; they fit perfectly, as if their hands had been made to measure.

"You were supposed to live a happy life, d-don't end like this..." She sobbed, sniffing. "You were supposed to grow up, you were supposed to have formed a family, it was supposed... that I shouldn’t have fallen in love with you..."

Max leaned down and pressed her head to Chloe's chest. Tears began to slide down her cheeks and stained a little the sheets that the blonde had on her. The sobs began to grow louder.

"B-But you stole my heart, and seeing your smile was the only thing that made my day, w-was the only thing I wanted to see... And now it's likely that I'll never see your dazzling smile again... It's unfair, it's unfair, it's so unfair..."

The brunette used her free hand to squeeze the sheets into a fist due to frustration.

"Why?... Why did have to be you from all the people?..." Max was now crying to tears alive. "Don’t you see what you're leaving behind? Don’t you see all those people who love you?... They'll miss you, Chloe..., and me too..." She said that last sentence in drowned words.

Max then lifted her head from Chloe's chest and wiped the tears from her face with her free hand, the other still intertwined with Chloe's. The brunette turned to the serene face of the blonde.

"But I can make one more promise, one that I intend to fulfill at all costs..."

The brunette approached Chloe to be able to whisper her next words so that only the blonde would listen to her.

"I'll wait for you, no matter how long it takes... I'll wait a century, five hundred years, a millennium, I'll wait forever if necessary; nothing will prevent me from waiting for you, Chloe Elizabeth Price... It's a promise."

Max then approached Chloe's forehead and left her a tender kiss in that place before backing up and reluctantly let go of the blonde's hand.

"I'll see you later, Chloe..."

And with that said, a raven flew out the window of Chloe Price's hospital room, heading to the Price residence.

Tomorrow morning they would disconnect Chloe, and Max did not want to see how they took the life of the only person she loved.

* * *

The funeral took place a few days later.

To say that there were a few tears would be a euphemism, 'waterfalls' would be a better term to describe it.

And just as it happened at William's funeral, the raven perched on Chloe's coffin, carrying in its beak the same flowers it had taken at the other funeral, but this time it brought with it another kind of flower: a black rose. The bird had left the bouquet on the coffin, but it remained with the black rose, and as at William's funeral, the raven lowered its head in respect and remorse.

When it was over and all the people who attended the funeral left the place, Max stayed on the tombstone of Chloe's grave, with the coffin of the blonde already underground. The raven was still holding that black rose in its beak, and it was not until it got off the gravestone and landed on the ground in front of it that it left the flower on the ground. When the bird got up it could read the inscription on the tombstone:

**Chloe Elizabeth Price**

**1994 - 2013**

**Beloved daughter and friend**

**"A true spirit of rebellion is one who seeks happiness in this life."**

Apparently Rachel had chosen the epitaph that would be engraved on Chloe's tombstone. According to her, that phrase described her friend well because of her punk exterior and her desire to live life. Rachel had once said that the fact that Chloe always had a smile on her face was thanks to Max (mainly), but because of that Chloe always looked for a way to be happy and enjoy the things she already had; her friends, her family, everything.

Anyone who has ever met Chloe Price could claim that the raven had brought happiness to the girl.

Because of that, Max thought that at least she had done something right after all.

* * *

A few weeks passed and the raven never left Chloe's grave alone for long. Max occasionally went to visit Joyce or Rachel to try to cheer them up a bit, but then go back to Chloe and stay there indefinitely.

A middle-aged man, who was one of the cemetery workers who cleaned the tombstones of the deceased, had noticed that the bird spent a lot of time on one of the tombstones, and the raven was watching him with great attention every time that he was coming to clean it. If the worker left something unclean on the tombstone, the raven would go and clean it up as if it were the most fragile thing in the world. In the end the worker became accustomed to the presence of the bird and made sure to keep clean the tombstone that the animal was watching.

* * *

The months passed and it was not until September of that year that Max received an unexpected visit.

While she was in her usual place on Chloe's tombstone, Max noticed a butterfly approaching her; its wings were a light blue, they seemed to shine with a golden glow, and the edges of the wings were black. The butterfly approached the raven and fluttered close to its beak, as if it trying to get the bird's attention. It was doing that for a few seconds before flying away to some particular place. Max, curious about what had just happened, tilted her head to the side before deciding to follow the blue butterfly.

The flight took a long time; apparently a raven could almost fly twice as fast as a butterfly, but Max really did not care, because she enjoyed flying. They passed through the village into the woods, and Max seemed to recognize the path they were following.

It would be a lie if Max said she was not surprised when the butterfly led her to the tree house.

They entered the tree house and the butterfly landed on the same sill that Max had landed in when she gave Chloe a surprise for her 18th birthday. Max was on the ground and soon the characteristic smoke surrounded the raven so that, after to dissipate, the brunette made an appearance. She scanned the butterfly for a few seconds, watching the animal slowly open and close its wings.

"Please, tell me you're who I think you are" Max said quietly, looking like she was about to break.

The brunette did not have to wait long for dense smoke to surround the butterfly and let a tall girl sit on the window sill after the smoke dissipated. She was wearing a blue leather jacket, with ripped jeans the same color but darker. Her combat boots were black and she wore a red tank top. She also wore a purple barbed bracelet with orange spikes on her right wrist. A certain ebony ring with an aquamarine imbedded in it was present on the ring finger of the girl's left hand. Her blond hair was still short with the ends dyed blue, and a shitty smile adorned her face.

Chloe.

Max could feel the tears sliding down her cheeks, but they were no longer of sadness, but of happiness. Chloe then came down from the window sill and approached Max, who pounced her when she was close enough, surrounding the blonde with her arms in a strong hug. Chloe also hugged Max with the same force and buried her face in the brunette's hair.

"You're here, you're really here..." Max sobbed into the hollow of Chloe's neck.

"I'm sorry I made you wait so long, sweetheart" Chloe said softly.

The brunette shook her head. "I promised I would wait for you, no matter how long it took... And it was worth it."

Max then separated her head a bit from Chloe so she could see her eyes. The brunette showed a radiant smile that melted the blonde's heart, and almost automatically their lips met in a chaste kiss, soft and slow. When they separated a few seconds later, both girls joined their foreheads; smiles adorned their faces.

"I missed you so much, Chloe."

"Me too, Max, me too."

Chloe smiled broadly and gave a small kiss to Max's nose. Both girls stayed like that, hugged, for a long time, just enjoying being together again.

A spider had climbed to the tree house and had perched near the window sill of one of the windows, seeing the girls hugging. An owl that was perched on the branch of a tree had observed them, and after ululating a little, spread its wings and flew towards the cemetery of Arcadia Bay. When it got there, it quickly but delicately alighted on Chloe's tombstone and would stay there until a certain raven and a certain butterfly decided to return. When they did, the owl would fly into town to watch Joyce Madsen, just as Max had done with Chloe.

The love of a spirit is eternal, and that is why spirits are forbidden to fall in love with a human, because if they do, there is a possibility that that person does not return as a spirit after dying. Sometimes it can be centuries, even millennia, until a human returns as a spirit and makes an appearance in the world of the living. It is not surprising that some spirits decide to be only spectators and do not decide to intervene in someone's life, because situations like those of Max and Chloe occur almost every time a spirit chooses to protect a human, and not many are capable of supporting the pain of losing a soul mate and waiting so long to see it again.

Who in their right mind would have thought that a human and a spirit could fall in love?

Definitely; love is rare, and life is strange.

**Author's Note:**

> Ravens are beautiful animals and don't necessarily symbolize death. These animals actually symbolize other things, and not all are bad. It only depends from what perspective you see things.
> 
> When I said that this writing was full of symbolism, I was not exaggerating. The animals, the flowers, the colors, the gem; nothing is there by chance.
> 
> Anyway, I hope you liked this fic. This is my first one-shot, because I usually do stories of several chapters. Don't hesitate to leave a comment with your opinion :)


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